Lifetouch is coming on Thursday, October 5, between 8:30am-noon. Review a detailed schedule here. We are recruiting volunteers to support Debra during this time. Volunteers receive a free picture packet!

Packets can be ordered online in advance at mylifetouch.com. Our Picture Day ID is F0737212Q0. If you need a hard copy of the online ordering instructions, please request at the front desk.

Ready or not, here it comes: Life After Trillium! It’s never too early to get prepared. Because preparation looks different for everyone, we have invited diverse representatives to this 3rd annual Resource Fair for Trillium high school students. The following organizations have been confirmed: PNCA, DigiPen, Andeo, Carpe Diem, Amigos, Pivot Jobcorps, PCC, Wayfinding Academy, Beau Monde Academy of Cosmetology, Oregon College of Art and Craft, NUNM, Worksource. RSVP to the Facebook event here.

At the end of last year, those of you who attended the Parent Listening Session let us know that one of your top concerns was communication. You wanted to know more about what your student was doing to meet their educational goals, and what our administration was doing to meet our organizational goals. We heard you. In these first weeks of school, we have had several urgent messages to get out, from our decision to remain open during the heat advisory, to announcing our plan to keep kids safe at school, in light of changes to DACA. At the end of the day, we felt confident that everyone was on the same page, but we would have liked to get there sooner. Next time, we plan to use our understanding of where you are most often engaging with our content. Toward that goal, we need your help. Please fill out our Communication Preferences Survey, as soon as possible.

Welcome to the 2017-18 school year! It is hard to believe that we are already two weeks in, given that I spent most of the summer anxiously awaiting the return of students, with their small dramas, big personalities, and amazing transformations. As a former Trillium teacher and advisor, I know firsthand where they are coming from, where they want to go, and can be flexible when they change their minds. I appreciate that our students are not all the same, and have different needs and expectations.

In July 2017, I was nominated and approved to serve as your Interim Executive Director. Today, I am as thrilled and honored as ever. I love what we do in our classrooms. Across all programs, teachers are tailoring content, instruction, and assessment to their unique group of students; teachers are learning from students just as much as students are learning from them. On the administrative side, my exposure to the youth perspective is less frequent, but I am shadowing and attending student meetings whenever possible.

In addition to reinvigorating our commitment to youth voice and choice, I will prioritize the following goals:

Increase fundraising, to build capacity and increase retention of students and staff.

Host more community events that reflect the diversity which exists within our walls.

Host more community conversations that don’t shy away from addressing racial equity, economic equity, and equity for students with disabilities.

No director is a one-woman show. I need your buy-in and support for these goals to become realities. First and foremost, this will require a cultural shift. Historically, our culture has been compartmentalized into adult, youth, and work culture. We have spoken past each other instead of collaborating, communicating in slightly different language. For example: “it’s going to be a great time!,” versus “lit,” versus *spirit fingers.* What we all really mean to say is “Trillium just wants to have fun!”

To resolve conflicts that may arise, create a healthy school climate, and process our feelings around change, we must come together in community, and have fun! Here are a few upcoming opportunities:

September 13th, 5:30-7:30pm Trillium Board Meeting

September 18th, 3:30-5pm Together for Trillium PTSA Meeting

September 21st, 6-7:30pm – Back to School Night

September 28th, 5-7pm – Life After Trillium

September 28th, 6-8pm – Parent Listening Session

Our Student Behavior & Discipline Policy, which is grounded in principles of Restorative Justice, will be available on the website by the end of the month. If you attend Back to School Night, you can engage in a Q&A session with those who wrote it, and pick up one of a limited number of print copies. The long and short is that RJ emphasizes correction and counseling over punishment, and seeks to replace strict zero-tolerance discipline policies with collaborative opportunities for restitution. Throughout the fall, we will track how RJ is working, and how it can be improved, and report back to you in the spring.

We are aligned with The Oregon Department of Education and The State Board of Education in their commitment to provide safe and welcoming schools for all Oregon students, regardless of national origin, immigration status or documentation status.

“All Oregon families deserve respect and should not have to live under constant worry about their future,” Deputy Superintendent Salam Noor said. “In the meantime, Oregon schools will continue to welcome all students and ODE will continue to support districts, schools and educators in making Oregon’s classrooms more safe, inclusive, welcoming and respectful.”

For our part, we would like to share the following lists of Community Resources and Immigration Counseling services, brought to us by the Latino Network. The Latino Network is an organization that aims to educate and empower Multnomah County Latinos, through community and school-based programs, events, and advocacy.

IRCO focuses on removing barriers to self-sufficiency and helping individuals and families thrive, by providing more than 150 culturally and linguistically specific social services, from employment, vocational training and English classes.

While Trillium typically follows PPS in instances of school cancellation, delay, and early release, the Administration is making the decision to remain open for the full day tomorrow. They are making this decision to avoid inconveniencing the working families in our community, who may not have an early pick up or childcare plan.

We do not bus students, and our aftercare program would be unable to meet the increased need. However, please note that aftercare will also remain open for its full duration tomorrow 3pm-6pm. Especially as we move into the afternoon, breaks will be taken indoors as needed. There is air conditioning throughout the building, which is kept at 71 degrees.

Families, the safety of your children is always at your own discretion. If early pick up, which would be 1:00pm for Lower School, and 1:20pm for Upper School; is a more comfortable option for you, that is okay. However, please let the front office and your student’s teachers know. Our number is 503-285-3833. Teacher emails are listed here.

What did you have for lunch today? If you prepaid for a Trillium School Lunch, we know that it was chili + rice – yum! The lunch menu will be posted to the website in advance, so that you and your student can decide how many lunch tickets to purchase. A single lunch ticket is $3.50. Visit Debra in the front office to prepay today!

If you would like to see if you qualify for free and reduced priced lunch, please complete an Application for Free and Reduced Priced Lunch by September 30th. You can download a paper application from the Forms Library or apply online at SchoolCafé. Visit the PPS – Nutrition Services webpage for more information.

New to Trillium? Please subscribe to Trillium News, our biweekly e-newsletter. We encourage all Trillium families to submit and subscribe. You may submit news, photos, and events to Kay Kennett, Community Liaison, by email: email hidden; JavaScript is required.

Please make sure you have filled out the free and reduced price lunch application to receive free lunch. Trillium will not be able to serve your student a free or reduced price lunch after 9/30/2017 without an application approval. Please email email hidden; JavaScript is required for the application or pick one up at the front office.

You may purchase an individual or punch ticket at the front office. Lunches are $3.50 each

Check out the lunch menu for the month on the bulletin board outside the kitchen or by clicking on the lunch button above.